Drying-machine.



J. McL. CAMERON.

DRYING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED APR.25. 1914.

1,186,933 v Patnted A r. 27, 1915.

3 SHEETSSHEET //v VE/VTOR,

Jam MaL Wow,

THE NORRIS PETERS co. PHOTCLLITHOH WASHIJQmNT D. c.

l. McL. CAMERON.

DRYING MACHINE. APPLICATION FILED APR 25.1.9l4.

1,136,933 Patented Apr. 27, 1915 3 SHEETS-SHEET 2- my a gym 2 4 111.

W/T/VESSES. /NVE/VTOR,

W John Mel. Cameron,

THE NORRIS PETERS CO FHOTO-LITHO. WASHINGTON, u. c,

J. McL. CAMERON.

DRYING MACHINE.

, APPLICATION FILED APR.25, I914. LWBMMW 4 Patented Apr. 27, 1915.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

cfam JWCL ['mnerom THE NORRIS PETERS 00.. PHOTO-LITHOH WASHINGTON D. C.

JOHN MCLEOD CAMERON, 0F RAVENSCOURT PARK, LONDON, ENGLAND.

DRYING-MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 27, 11915.

Application filed April 25, 1914. Serial No. 834,495.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, JOHN MoLnoo CAM- ERON, a subject of His Majesty the King of England, residing at Forest Lodge, Ravenscourt Park, in the county of London, Kingdom of England, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in or Relating to Drying-Wlachines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in drying machines of the kind comprising a tower and a central revolving shaft each of which carries a. plurality of alternately arranged plates or platforms.

In this class of apparatus it has been pro posed to provide hinged deflecting plates on the fixed and revolving plates which serve to deflect the material alternately ofi the periphery of a revolving plate and down through a central aperture in a fixed plate. Such an arrangement is found to be quite unsuitable for treating materials which are, or eventually become, viscous, such as sewage for which the present invention is particularly suitable as the viscous mass quickly becomes clogged up around the central shaft and at the periphery of the plate forms.

To this end the invention consists primarily in the pro-vision, in a machine of the kind described, of means for controllingthe distribution of the material to, and through, the machine in a more effective manner, the former by rotary valves and tipping troughs and the latter by controlling the duration of operation of the scrapers and by the provision of radial apertures in the platforms so that the material is swept off in relatively small quantities and not collected in a mass as heretofore in such a machine.

after referred to; Fig. 4: is a sectional-plan I view illustrating the single trough and the scraper shown in the preceding figure; Fig. 5 is a detail plan View illustrating an arrangement in which a single non-rotating trough is employed and tipped by rotating tappets; Fig. 6 is a detail sectional:

view thereof; and Figs. 7 to 1a are detail sectional views of scrapers hereinafter referred to. y

As shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings the machine comprises a cylindrical chamber at having top and bottom covers I) and 0 respectively. Mounted to rotate within the said chamber is a vertically and centrally disposed shaft 03 which carriesa plurality of tables 6 and scrapers 7. The outer casing atalso carries a plurality of fixed tables 9 and scrapers h.

In order to effect the distribution of the incoming material I may, as shown in Figs... 1 and 2, provide in a substantially known manner a rotating valve or cock comprising in the present arrangement a circular chamber or trough i which may as shown be conveniently secured to the rotating shaft (2? or driven independently if desired and which by the provision of one or more ports 6 therein will periodically discharge its contents by way of the ports j by way of the distributing chutes 3' carried by the outer casing 64, onto the platforms of the uppermost table g which in this case is carried by the casing a. The material to be treated is fed into the trough 71 by way of a pipe 70 passing through the cover I) of the chamer a.

To insure the subsequent distribution and removal of the material from the surfaces of the platforms 0 or g as the case may be as it progresses downwardly through the machine I preferably construct the scrapers f and it so that they can be attached to their supports by hinge pins Z and can be retained in or returned to their correct or operative position relative to the platforms by means of springs m as in Figs. 8, 10 and 11 or by a counter-weight n as in Fig. 7. Or alternatively the scrapers may be made of sheets or narrow strips of elastic material 0 such as spring steel as in Fig. 9.

I construct each of the platforms 6 and g with one or more radially disposed apertures therein and with corrugations or indentations as indicated at in Fig.2 which serve not only to increase the heating surface but help toretard the flow of a liquid material over them and thereby assist in the more effective transmission of heat to the said material at the time when it is most liquid.

The platforms 6 carried by the vertical rotating shaft dcarry the scrapersf operating on the fixed platforms 9. while these i scrapers it carried by the'fixed platforms operate onthe platforms 6 on the shaft 01. The material is thus removed from a fixed platform 9 and falls through the aperture or aperturestherein on to a rotating one f and then on to a fixed one 9 again in its progress through the drier.

When very liquid materials have to be dried the gases entering from the conduit Q, at the base of the machine are liable to become saturated and ineffective before they reach the upper platforms. 'Toobviate this I take a portion of the gases and admit them at one or more auxiliary inlets 7- s in the higher portion of the machine; suitable valves being provided as shown at t for the control of all the aforesaid inlets.

As an alternative method of effecting the distribution of the incoming material I may ashin Figs. 3 and 4 employ one or more 2O troughs or. receptacles a which may as shown be attached to the rotating shaft so as to revolve with it and which may be filled in any convenient manner while in motion such as by 'meansof a circular rotating trough Z with outlet Z and pipe is. 'This trough, or troughs, as the case may be, is. adapted to be t pped up so as to discharge its contents on to the platform 9 by means of suitable tappets, o'r'wipers 12 which come in contact with the trough, or a suitable projection provided thereon, as the said trough rotates.

As a still" further alternative I could, as in Figs. 5' and 6, employ one or more fixed troughs u whichicould be' tipped by one or .more tappets or wipers von one of the rotati'ng tables 6.

In [order to control theoperation of the scrapers and to insure that the material fed onto one tableshall be uniformly distributed on to the next table'below it I provide means for keeping them in operation during only ,a portion of their revolution. To this end I'may as shown in Figs. 12 to 14: providethemwith a counter-weight w at their ends which would normally serve to keep them lifted up clear of the material on the top ofthe tables on which they operate as shown in Fig. 12. For putting them periodically' in operation I provide one or more wipers orftappets m which are adapted to engage with projections g on one or more of the scrapers according to the arrangement adopted. Thus to operate a relatively fixed scraper 72 I could'asin Fig. 13 employ one or more rotating wipers or tappets at which would engage the portions or projections g on thescrapers to keep them in position for aporti'on' of their travel. Similarly I could as is shown in Fig. 14" provide a rotating scraper f and a fixed wiper m onthe chamber awhiloh would act ina similar manner. In

' some cases as in Figs. 1 and 2, where both 'fixedand rotating tables 6 9,1 and also fixed and rotatable scrapers f and It, areemployed wh ch are carri d'byth outer ng a a the revolving shaft d respectively I might operate or control the duration of operation of one or both sets of scrapers f and h in the manner hereinbefore described.

. What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. A drying machine comprising in combination a casing or tower, a central rotatable shaft therein, fixed platforms 01' drying floors on the casing, rotating platforms on the central shaft, said fixed and rotating platforms having radially arranged apertures, and scrapers carried by said platforms for the purpose of controlling the distribution of the material, substantially as described.

2. A drying machine comprising in combination a casing or tower, a central rotatable shaft therein, fixed platforms or dry ing floors on the casing, rotating platforms on the central shaft, said fixed and rotating ing floors on the casing, rotating platforms on the central shaft, said fixed and rotating platforms having radially arranged apertures, scrapers carried by said platforms for the purpose of controlling the distribution of the material and means for controlling the supply of the material to be treated, comprising a rotating trough, substantially as described.

4. A drying machine comprising in combination a casing or tower, a central rotatable shaft therein, fixed platforms or drying fioors on the casing, rotating platforms on the central shaft, said fixed and rotating platforms having radially arranged apertures, scrapers carried by said platforms for the purpose of controlling the distribution of the material and means for controlling the supply of the material to be treated, comprising a distributing trough adapted to be automatically tipped at intervals to cause it to discharge its contents substantially as described.

7 5. A drying machine comprising in combination a casing or tower, a central rota- 1,136,933 ltlll cally controlling the duration of operation of the scrapers substantially as described.

6. A drying machine comprising in combination a casing or tower, a central rotatable shaft therein, fixed platforms or drying floors on the casing, rotating platforms on the central shaft, said fixed and rotating platforms having radially arranged apertures, scrapers carried by said platforms for the purpose of controlling the distribution of the material and corrugations or indentations on the platforms, substantially as described.

7 A drying machine comprising a casing or tower, a central shaft therein, fixed platforms or drying floors arranged at spaced points within the casing and extending from the walls thereof to the central rotatable a ing Witnesses.

JOHN MoLEOD CAMERON. Witnesses: FRANK BLAKEY,

C. S. WITHERS.

topics of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

